


Christmas at the Covert

by vix_spes



Category: Temeraire - Naomi Novik
Genre: Christmas, Gift Fic, M/M, Matchmaking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-23
Updated: 2014-12-23
Packaged: 2018-03-15 13:34:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3449048
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vix_spes/pseuds/vix_spes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With the formation camped in for the winter, they have to occupy themselves somehow...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Christmas at the Covert

**Author's Note:**

  * For [slightlytookish](https://archiveofourown.org/users/slightlytookish/gifts).



It hadn’t taken Laurence long after joining the Aerial Corps to realise that, when it came to gossip, the society ladies that he had previously been acquainted with had absolutely nothing on the dragons of the Corps. All of the dragons, regardless of age, thrived on gossip particularly those being kept in the coverts. The formation led by Captain Catherine Harcourt and Lily was no different. And if they weren’t gossiping then they were bragging about how wonderful their captains were. Or at least Temeraire and Iskierka were. With winter firmly set in and Bonaparte defeated, there was nothing for many of the heavy and middleweight dragons to do and so the whole formation was settled in to the Loch Laggan covert for the winter.

If a formation was grounded for the winter then Loch Laggan was the most coveted of all the British coverts. Despite its location in Inverness-shire, Loch Laggan had the advantage of the old Roman baths which warmed it from the foundations upwards. It had been snowing heavily for several days and the snow on the ground was piling up steadily so spots on the heated spots were at a premium. Celeritas and the other dragons stationed permanently at the training grounds had priority over everybody else but they were closely followed by the dragons of Lily’s formation. They might not have been there as long as some of the other formations but having three heavyweights and three middleweights meant that they could claim a decent amount of space on the heated stones.

Temeraire had been absolutely fascinated by the concept of Christmas from the moment that Laurence had mentioned it and had pestered Laurence for as many details as possible and, when Laurence’s information no longer satisfied him, had questioned the other Captains until they were sick of his questions. Iskierka had been similarly delighted by the sound of Christmas but that was mainly down to the concept of presents. Granby had even been heard grumbling that Iskierka’s fondness for treasure was going to put him in the poorhouse now that Bonaparte had been defeated and prize money was no longer an option.

Both Temeraire and Iskierka had been particularly enamoured with the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe and, having come up with what they felt was a suitable plan with regards to Iskierka’s Captain, enlisted the help of the rest of the formation, however reluctant Maximus had been. Despite the grumblings of Immortalis, Iskierka had been unable to keep quiet about the nature of the relationship between Granby and Little, shrieking that they were together and that she and Immortalis would give them an egg and it would be perfect. None of the formation, human or dragon, cared that Granby and Little were involved but it took a lot of explaining from Laurence (via Temeraire) and a furiously blushing Granby before Iskierka finally seemed to grasp that just because their formation didn’t care, not everybody would be the same.

After Granby had confirmed the information that Iskierka had let slip, complaining all the while that his dragon was incapable of keeping secrets, Laurence had watched the pair closely trying to see if there was anything visible between the pair that he had missed. He didn't know Augustine Little well, the older man always very much keeping to himself, but he considered John Granby a close friend despite the rough start to their relationship. Even now, when he was looking closely for something more, it took him a considerable amount of time before he saw things that hinted at more of a relationship than that of friends and colleagues. It wasn't overt but the deep affection between them was clear and he was genuinely happy for both men.

However, with the covert full of formations not to mention the permanent residents, everyone in their formation soon became aware of grumblings from both Granby and Little that they hadn’t been able to spend any quality time together in private. This was where Temeraire and Iskierka’s plan had come into play. Enlisting the willing help of Emily Roland and Nitidus, their scheming had come together quickly.

It had taken very little persuasion to get all of the Captains down to the spot that the formation had claimed for themselves and all of the dragons had turned a blind eye to Emily Roland skulking behind Maximus’ bulk. Despite having her mother’s sensible and pragmatic approach to romance and relationships for women in the aerial corps, she had been quite starry-eyed at the idea of a romance between the two captains. There had been plenty of mulled wine passed around so the atmosphere was perfectly relaxed and convivial by the time Temeraire and Iskierka put their plan into action. A quick glance from Temeraire had Nitidus springing up from where he had been half-sprawled over Messoria’s back, the biggest spray of mistletoe that Emily had been able to find in his jaws. Giving a quick beat of his wings, he hovered over where Granby and Little sat as close to each other as physically possible yet still within the constraints of their own comfort, dangling the mistletoe over their heads.

Both men immediately flushed hotly as cheers broke out from both captains and dragons, Catherine leading the cheers encouraging them to kiss. Even though Little had come out of his shell somewhat since finding out that their formation knew and didn’t care, he was still reticent about public displays of affection and tried to demur, looking slightly panicked when his protests were shot down. Granby had no such compunctions and, to the whoops of delight from Catherine, Chenery and Sutton, tugged Little in for a thorough kiss.

Laurence smiled from his spot leant against Temeraire’s warm bulk, genuinely happy for his two friends. His smile faded slightly as he caught Temeraire’s attempts to whisper to Maximus that he was very happy for Granby and Little but that really Laurence needed somebody as long as they didn’t take him away from Temeraire and did Maximus know of any suitable Captains?


End file.
